Ivan Formica

Bio: Ivan Formica is an academic researcher from University of Messina. The author has contributed to research in topics: Alexithymia & Toronto Alexithymia Scale. The author has an hindex of 5, co-authored 17 publications receiving 189 citations.

The influence of parenting on maladaptive cognitive schema: a cross-sectional research on a group of adults.

Abstract: BACKGROUND The literature emphasizes the role of early interpersonal experiences in the development of cognitive vulnerability; in particular, interruptions in early family relationships, parental unavailability and dysfunctional parenting are potential evolutionary precursors to negative cognitive style and emotional disorders. MATERIALS AND METHODS This study measured the relationship of retrospective ratings on parental bonding with cognitive patterns in a group of Italian adults. The objectives of this study were as follows: to analyze the influence of age and education level on cognitive domains; to verify whether being parents and living at home with parents affect both parenting style and cognitive domains; to investigate how the type of the maternal and paternal parenting independently affects cognitive styles; to measure the predictive variables for the use of cognitive dysfunctional patterns and to investigate age as a moderating variable of the relation between parenting styles and cognitive domains in a group of adult men and women. The research involved 209 adults (118 males and 91 females) living in Sicily (Italy) aged between 20 and 60 years (M = 37.52; SD = 11.42). The research lasted for 1 year. The instruments used were the Parental Bonding Instrument to measure the perception of parenting during childhood and the Young Schema Questionnaire-3 to investigate cognitive patterns. RESULTS Data show that being a younger adult male with mother's parenting style characterized by a lower level of nurturance is predictive of the disconnection and rejection domain, whereas, being a younger adult woman, with a higher level of maternal control is predictive of the impaired limits domain. CONCLUSION This study underlines that because mothers and fathers establish different bonds with their children, care and control by both parents might impact different domains of development.

The existential suspension of the young-adult in times of liquid modernity. A differential analysis of identity uneasiness in precarious times

Abstract: The present paper gives a contribution to the Italian psychology literature dealing with identity uneasiness of the young adult, which represents a clinically significant life-span phase especially if considered within the critical working situation that compels them to postpone life-markers which are the first signs of entering adultness Those belonging to young adulthood seem uncompleted identities, hanging in between waiting to fulfil one’s life projects and the lack of satisfactory responses from modern society The present research aims to investigate the relationship between personal and social identity, identifying possible similarities and differences between a group of Italian employed adults and a group of unemployed adults A group of 173 Italian young adults, aged between 27 and 34, were recruited to complete an Identifying Information Form constructed ad hoc, the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale, the Multi-Measure Agnostic Personality Scale, and the Identity Stage Resolution Index Data showed that unemployed young adults have a lower adult and social identity sense than employed ones, who also present an elevated level of ego-strength Furthermore, results underline that having a permanent employment, an elevated self-esteem, and good ego-strength, and internal locus of control are predictive of the adult identity among employed subjects These young people’s difficulties to securely enter a profession is a risk factor for establishing a social identity, as well as, for the mental health; they may even impact one’s awareness, especially because the principle on which post-modern society is based is the demonstration of the value of one’s own resources

Relationship between parenting, alexithymia and adult attachment styles: a cross-national study in Sicilian and Andalusian young adults

Abstract: Background : Literature underline that attachment styles can be considered as an important factor that facilitates exploration of the self and environment, and influences individual’s thoughts, feelings and behavior, above all during adolescence. The purposes of the present study were the following: to investigate the relation between parenting, alexithymia and adult attachment styles; to measure the predictive variables of the adult attachment-related anxiety and avoidance, and the predictors of the level of alexithymia. Method: The participants were 217 students, of which: a group of 97 Andalusian academic students (44.7%), aged between 18 and 29 (M = 19.47; SD = 2.23); a group of 120 students from Sicilian academic students (55.3%), aged between 18 and 23 (M = 18.85; SD = 1.11). The participants were assigned to complete the following questionnaires: the Parental Bonding Instrument, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, and the Experience in Close Relationships. Results: Findings suggest that there are differences between Italy and Spain in adult attachment styles: in particular, Italian students appeared to manifest a higher tendency to use the avoidance style than Spanish ones, which manifested a higher level of anxiety. Furthermore, belonging to the Andalusian culture, and above all, having an elevated perception of the paternal and maternal overprotection could represent possible predictive variables to the general level of alexithymia. Conclusions: The results of this study support the research hypothesis that alexithymia is associated with the perceived parental bonding and attachment style.

The Oedipus complex in psychoanalysis: reflections on Freud’s clinical cases

Abstract: The Oedipus complex represents a key concept of psychoanalytic theory and is one of Freud’s most significant ideas. It constitutes a basic conflict in all humans’ psyche and it defines the structure of individual’s sexual identity. Despite Freud fully recognizing its crucial role in the organization of mental life, he never dedicated to it an entire writing. The Oedipus complex was, in fact, developed in multiple steps and its development cannot be disentangled from events in Freud’s personal and professional life. The aim of this paper is to describe the development of Freud’s concept of the Oedipus complex throughout his writings. Objectives of the study were, first, to provide a description of the theoretical mechanisms and, second, to focus on the Oedipus complex on three of Freud’s clinical cases: Dora, Little Hans and the Wolf-Man.

Persuasion and Healing: A Comparative Study of Psychotherapy

Abstract: Psychoanalysis, individual psychology, gestalt therapy, client-centered counseling, faith healing, hypnosis, encounter groups, transactional therapy, behavior modification, and existentialist analysis are some of the different treatments available for unhappy, fearful, and anxious sufferers. The proponents of each method offer a theoretical explanation of their rationale and report sizable numbers of successes. Which is the best method? Which is the most correct theory? Are any of them of any value? Or should everyone be treated with pills or diet or surgery? Jerome D. Frank, professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins, believes there is real value in psychotherapy, which he describes as treatment that "relies primarily on the healer's ability to mobilize healing forces in the sufferer by psychological means." However, he believes that the principal value lies not in the postulated theoretical bases but in factors that are common to all the various forms of therapy. He points out that all patients

Gene-environment interactions in severe mental illness.

Abstract: Severe mental illness is a broad category that includes schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and severe depression. Both genetic disposition and environmental exposures play important roles in the development of severe mental illness. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that the roles of genetic and environmental depend on each other. Gene-environment interactions may underlie the paradox of strong environmental factors for highly heritable disorders, the low estimates of shared environmental influences in twin studies of severe mental illness and the heritability gap between twin and molecular heritability estimates. Sons and daughters of parents with severe mental illness are more vulnerable to the effects of prenatal and postnatal environmental exposures, suggesting that the expression of genetic liability depends on environment. In the last decade, gene-environment interactions involving specific molecular variants in candidate genes have been identified. Replicated findings include an interaction between a polymorphism in the AKT1 gene and cannabis use in the development of psychosis and an interaction between the length polymorphism of the serotonin transporter gene and childhood maltreatment in the development of persistent depressive disorder. Bipolar disorder has been underinvestigated, with only a single study showing an interaction between a functional polymorphism in BDNF and stressful life events triggering bipolar depressive episodes. The first systematic search for gene-environment interactions has found that a polymorphism in CTNNA3 may sensitise the developing brain to the pathogenic effect of cytomegalovirus in utero, leading to schizophrenia in adulthood. Strategies for genome-wide investigations will likely include coordination between epidemiological and genetic research efforts, systematic assessment of multiple environmental factors in large samples, and prioritization of genetic variants.